515 North State

Five One Five North State features bold, angular architecture designed by Kenzo Tange, winner of the 1987 Pritzker Prize for architecture. ESI re-imagined the lobby to attract a more diverse tenant base by adding life and warmth to the space.

The centerpiece of which is a 23-foot-tall LED display. The screen functions as a media artwork playing artful videos of daily life in the surrounding vibrant River North neighborhood. A software system “paints” the algorithmically created videos in an Impressionist style; as the colors of one scene merge into another, new compositions are made. The five content modes were inspired by the neighborhood’s constant movement: traffic and trains, bridges and rivers, people, green space and sky.

From the outside, a new ID announces the building as a modern property and gives it a clear front door.The LED wall is visible through the glass facade, mirroring the energy of the city and engaging passersby.

Working with existing architecture and a multidisciplinary team,my role in the project involved: